I wish more people would be able to take inspiration by the Dude's laid back and tolerant attitude. The Dude doesn't judge, he doesn't create strife, he lets people be people, he just flows through life and sees what it has to offer. The Dude doesn't need money, fame and all that other materialistic stuff, he enjoys the smaller things in life.
In many ways he's the modern version of
Diogenes, whom I consider to be the dudest of all dudes, albeit a little bit more cynical:
- never die he achieve a piece of writing nor did he perform any kind of profitable trade in his whole life... not even a bowling match is recorded to his name
- he dabbled a bit in falsifying money... you know just in case you can't postdate a check when you want to buy a carton of milk in the middle of the night
- he jerked off in public, defecated in the amphitheater, didn't possess a single piece of clothing and generally didn't have a whole lot of fucks to give what people think... just like smoking pot while driving and running around in water sandals and a bathrobe
- he was once captured by pirates while on voyage to Aegina... turned out, they were actually nihilists from Germany
- he destroyed the single wooden bowl he possessed on seeing a peasant boy drink from the hollow of his hands... and when he crashed his car he did not care much at all, he simply went on foot
- Diogenes used to live in a wine barrel... but nary a lamp and an old rug to tie the room together
One day, when Diogenes was chillin' in the sun, listening to his favorite bowling game while trippin' on a bit of
Kykeon, Alexander The Great cam by and asked if there was any favor he might do for him. Thereupon Diogenes merely replied, "just stand out of the sunlight, my dude, and take it easy". Truly impressed by Diogenes' most dudest wisdom, Alexander declared, "if only I could be as laid back as His Dudeness". "If I were not the Dude, I would still wish to be Dude," Diogenes replied. Unfortunately as we know, Alexander didn't take it as easy in his following years.
Diogenes tried to demonstrate that wisdom and happiness belong to the man who is independent of society and that civilization is regressive. He scorned not only property, reputation and political social organization, but also material comfort. It is said that he didn't think highly of family ties, hence he never fathered a son or daughter. But it is rumored that he once fornicated with some crazy muse who only wanted his semen.
There are conflicting accounts of Diogenes' death. He is alleged variously to have held his breath; to have become ill from eating raw octopus; or to have suffered an infected dog bite. He left instructions to be, either thrown outside the city wall so animals could feast on his body, or his ashes to be put in a coffee can. When asked if he minded this, he said, "nah man, as long as you provide me with a White Russian and a stick to drive the creatures away, I'll be fine." When asked how he could use the stick and drink his White Russian since he would be dead, he replied "if I'm dead, then why should I care what happens?"
